<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Imperfection by lousylark</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24481150">Imperfection</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/lousylark/pseuds/lousylark'>lousylark</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harvest Moon, Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Fluff</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 03:22:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,258</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24481150</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/lousylark/pseuds/lousylark</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Cliff wants to create the perfect birthday surprise for Claire. Things do not go according to plan. // This is a gift for jackie-kawaii on tumblr as part of the Bokumono Exchange Spring 2020!</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Claire the Farmer/Cliff (Harvest Moon), Kai/Rick (Harvest Moon), Karen/Rick (Harvest Moon)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Bokumono Exchanges</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Imperfection</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=jackie-kawaii+on+tumblr">jackie-kawaii on tumblr</a>.</li>



    </ul></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>Imperfection</em>
</p><hr/><p>Cliff might just die of anxiety.</p><p>It’s a beautiful day: the early summer sun streams down on Mineral Town’s beach, just hot enough to make the ocean’s waves a welcome temptation. Red and blue streamers flap lazily in the wind as Zack and Gotz team up to bury another tall, decorated pole in the sand. Kai, with Popuri and Ann’s help, is busy setting up his cooking station. Where the sand meets the trees, Rick has his arms full of logs for that night’s bonfire, while Mary and Stu trail behind him, picking up any stray sticks he drops along the way.</p><p>Despite the beauty and the joy of watching his fellow villagers -- friends, even -- prepare Claire’s birthday surprise, Cliff is terrified that something is going to ruin this perfect day. He turns to Duke, who is tactfully concocting a child-friendly punch from sparkling juice and fruits.</p><p>“You’re sure Claire’s not gonna come to the beach and see all this?” he asks, digging one booted toe into the sand.</p><p>Duke chuckles. “You’re thinking too much, Cliff. You of all people should know her schedule. She is your wife.”</p><p>Heat rises to Cliff’s cheeks. Wife. The term still feels new, like he has to chew it around in his mouth a bit before he can actually say it. Three years ago, when he first arrived in Mineral Town, he would’ve balked at the idea of getting married -- not because he didn’t like the concept itself, but because the idea of someone falling in love with somebody like him seemed so ludicrous. But if he’d learned anything about his wife in their year of dating and two seasons of marriage, it was that she stood against the looming threat of ludicracy with a smile and a coquettish wink.</p><p>Claire: his brave, compassionate, wonderful wife. At the thought of her, he feels warmth blossom in his chest, like he’s taking a sip from the first batch of Duke’s summer wine.</p><p>That’s why this surprise party has to be perfect. Claire has given him so much: her love and her home, of course, but also a purpose in life that he used to think was long lost. It’s time for him to do something extravagant in return. A big beach-cookout-surprise-party is, of course, a bit outside his comfort zone, but it’s what she deserves. One, single day where she doesn’t have to stress about farm budgets or pregnant cows or mediating Mineral Town’s gossip circles -- and it’s up to him to make sure it happens.</p><p>“In any case,” Duke says, slapping Cliff on his back and yanking him from his thoughts, “Manna said she’d warn us if she saw Claire making her way to the beach, and, by your own words, she won’t even be done with farm work until noon. Right?”</p><p>Cliff nods, feeling a bit more resolute. “Right. Thanks, Duke.”</p><p>Duke’s eyes soften. He lays a firm hand on Cliff’s shoulder. “Of course, son.” He clears his throat. Takes away his hand. “Alright, now, what can you get started on next? Zach and Gotz have got the poles taken care of. Kai’s got food. How’s Basil doing on the flower arrangements?”</p><p>Cliff glances toward where Basil has his flower arranging station set up, toward the east end of the beach. The botanist already has four arrangements of sunflowers -- Claire’s favorite -- completed, and it looks like another two are on the way. “All set there.”</p><p>He looks around the rest of the beach. All of the townspeople are hard at work preparing their specific duties. Ann is already firing up the grill; a cooler of fish lies half-buried in the sand next to her. Stu and Mary are now busy dumping their logs and sticks in a pile a good distance from the shore -- the spot of the after-dinner bonfire.</p><p>Cliff allows himself a tiny smile. Everything is going perfectly --</p><p>-- “You what?!”</p><p>He freezes. Whips his head to the left. There, he sees Rick fuming, while Kai has his arms folded in front of his chest, a lazy grin stretched across his face.</p><p>“Ugh,” Cliff groans, wiping some sweat from his forehead.</p><p>“You want me to take care of them?” Duke asks, practically rolling up his sleeves before Cliff can even respond.</p><p>“No, no,” he interjects, already starting toward the pair of quarrelers. “I got it.”</p><p>As he nears Kai and Rick, the latter shouts in distress again. Karen is looking on from a short distance away -- though, rather than looking worried for Rick, who is no match for Kai’s smooth wit and toned muscles, she simply looks amused.</p><p>“Isn’t he so cute when he’s mad?” she asks, giggling. Cliff has a cool quip on the tip of his tongue, but before he can utter a word, Karen hollers, “Look out! Papa Bear Cliff is coming to break you two up!”</p><p>Ignoring the epitaph, Cliff pushes onward until he stands just in front of Rick and Kai. Though Rick is bulky and Kai is lean, Cliff is taller than the two of them by at least half a foot.</p><p>“What’s up, Cliff?” Kai asks in a nonchalant tone.</p><p>Cliff sighs. Shades his forehead against the sun. “I thought you two agreed not to argue today.”</p><p>Rick crosses his arms over his chest, mirroring Kai. “Kai started it.”</p><p>Kai snickers. “You’re like a little kid, Ricky.” He moves his hand as if to tossle Rick’s hair, but Rick pushes him away like an old man shooing a fly.</p><p>The sun feels hotter on Cliff’s neck now -- more sweat-inducing than before. He tugs his ponytail until it’s tight against the back of his head again.</p><p>“I don’t really care who started it or what it’s about,” Cliff says, “just can it. Please. Just for today.”</p><p>Karen, who has moved closer to the trio, pipes up. “Yeah, after Claire Bear’s perfect birthday party, you guys can go back to having lovers’ quarrels.”</p><p>Rick growls -- yet there’s a hint of hurt in his eyes. “They aren’t -- aren’t lovers’ quarrels, Karen.”</p><p>Before Kai can respond with whatever jest he has prepared, Karen swoops in like a bird and grabs Rick’s arm. Immediately, his eyes turn from shadowed to calm, and a blush rises to his cheeks.</p><p>“Come on, Ricky,” she says, tugging him away from Kai and back toward the middle of the beach. “Let’s cool down in the water.” She winks at him. “I’m in the mood to get a little wet.”</p><p>Rick barely stammers a response as they head in the other direction. Cliff, feeling relieved and grateful for Karen stepping in, allows himself to relax a bit.</p><p>“This is all for Claire,” he murmurs to himself in an attempt to regain some mental footing.</p><p>He’s about to turn away and return to his duties overseeing preparations -- until he hears a heavy sigh from Kai.</p><p>He looks down and is surprised to see Kai gazing mournfully after Rick and Karen. Cliff clears his throat to signal his presence, but if Kai is at all embarrassed that he’s noticed his morose mood, he doesn’t show it.</p><p>“You’re pretty quiet, Cliff,” Kai comments, his gaze still not leaving the pair. Rick is taking off his socks and shoes while Karen removes her button-up shirt to reveal a black bikini.</p><p>Cliff, realizing that Kai is waiting for a response, says, “Uh, yeah. I guess.”</p><p>“But I bet you’re really observant. I know Claire’s really observant, too -- she probably wouldn’t have married someone who isn’t as smart as she is.”</p><p>“Um, well,” Cliff says, a bit taken aback by that comment. He thinks it’s meant to be a compliment, but it’s worded so strangely that he doesn’t know exactly what to say. He tries to judge by Kai’s expression, but the food shack owner is still just looking at Rick from afar. His brown eyes seem closer to black than usual, even with the sunlight highlighting his features.</p><p>He looks from Kai to Rick and Karen, and then back again. It doesn’t take him too long to connect the dots: Kai’s pained expression as he watches Karen and Rick gleefully splash water at each other is all-too-telling. All those trips Kai took to the poultry farm -- he suddenly realizes it wasn’t Popuri he wanted to visit, but Rick.</p><p>Inwardly, he scoffs at himself. And Kai thinks he’s observant.</p><p>He clears his throat, willing himself to find something to say. Claire always tells him that he can use empathy when he struggles for words -- what would he want to hear, need to hear, if he were in Kai’s shoes? He remembers being heartbroken over seeing the Doctor walk Claire home one day, before he’d worked up the courage to tell her his feelings. Back then, it would’ve helped him to know --</p><p>“Maybe, uh,” he starts, avoiding Kai’s gaze, “you know, maybe not everything is as it seems, right? Have you, um...have you tried talking to Rick about, uh, how you feel about him?”</p><p>This seems to snap Kai out of his strange, lovesick-induced stupor. “Talk to Rick?” he questions. “About...how I feel?”</p><p>“Uh, yeah.”</p><p>“You think that’d work?”</p><p>Cliff hesitates. He’s never really been one to give people advice. Instead, he just settles for saying, “Well, I can’t make any promises. It worked for me, though.”</p><p>Kai tenses for a moment -- and then barks out a loud laugh.</p><p>“You know what?” he says, almost dumbfounded. “You know what, Cliff? You’re so right. I’m gonna tell Rick how I feel. I’m gonna ask him out.”</p><p>Cliff smiles softly, only briefly considering that Rick might not feel the same way and he’s thus sending a man to his own emotional doom. “Go for it, Kai. Tomorrow?”</p><p>Kai scoffs. Waves a hand. “No. Not soon enough. I’m doing it tonight. At the bonfire.”</p><p>“To...Tonight?”</p><p>Before Cliff can express his concerns, Kai has already started back toward his grilling station. He does the courtesy of looking over his shoulder and shouting, “Thanks for the advice, man! Wish me luck!”</p><p>Cliff stands, dumbfounded, his feet digging into the sand.</p><p>“Good...luck?” he says quietly, more to himself than anyone else.</p><p>So much for Claire’s perfect, drama-free birthday.</p><hr/><p>Cliff might die of anxiety -- again.</p><p>All things considered, the surprise goes perfectly. Claire arrives at the beach in the late afternoon and is stunned by the presence of all her friends, as well as the beautiful party they’ve concocted. Cliff can’t help his pride -- especially when Claire pulls him aside and offers him a saccharine kiss and a “thank you” by the shore of the beach. This is, of course, quickly interrupted when Stu races over to tell her that dinner is ready, but Cliff holds the moment in the forefront of his mind like a lucky charm in his pocket.</p><p>Still, as the sun starts to fall under the swelling waves, Cliff keeps glancing toward where Kai sits next to Rick and Karen. He really wants things to go well for Kai -- truly, he does -- but he knows that if any sort of drama starts, Claire will feel obligated to step in and mediate like she always does, ruining his attempts at making this a night solely for her wellbeing.</p><p>“Cliff?”</p><p>He looks up. Claire, seated on the log next to him, gazes at him with a gentle curiosity. He doesn’t even know when she sat down next to him -- the last he remembers, she was chatting with Popuri and Ellie over by the s’mores station.</p><p>The corner of Claire’s mouth pulls up in a half-smile. Firelight illuminates one side of her face, but even half-shadowed, he’s taken by the waves of her saltwater hair and her freckles, like grains of sand scattered on her skin.</p><p>“I got us some s’mores stuff,” she starts, her voice edged with good humor, “but you don’t get a marshmallow ‘til you tell me what’s had you so preoccupied all day.”</p><p>He snorts softly. Of course she’d noticed. She always does.</p><p>Sighing, he wraps one arm around her shoulders and pulls her closer to him. “I’m just...trying to make sure today is perfect.”</p><p>Her brow furrows. “What do you mean? It is perfect. I couldn’t have asked for a better birthday.”</p><p>“I just, you know,” he starts, searching for the words, “don’t want any drama. There’s always drama.”</p><p>Claire just giggles at that. “Yeah, but at least it doesn’t really concern us anymore. I’ve got you, you’ve got me. That’s why we can afford to help the others.” She breaks away from his half-hug, reaches behind her back, and holds a marshmallow just at the end of his nose. His mouth waters a bit, but before he can even move to eat it, she pops it into her mouth.</p><p>He laughs. “Jerk.” Looks around behind her -- but there are no marshmallows to be found. “Wait, where are you even hiding them?”</p><p>She pulls another marshmallow out of seemingly nowhere, tugging it out of his reach before he can grab it from her lithe fingers. “Uh-uh. Gotta say the magic words.”</p><p>But before he can utter a please or thank you, a loud pop comes from the corner of the beach. Kassey, a fireworks expert from the nearby Forget-Me-Not-Valley that Duke hired for the party, waves toward the group near the bonfire.</p><p>“Look out!” he cries, and Cliff barely catches a glimpse of the bottle rocket before it lands right in the center of the crowd. A couple of people cry out in surprise, but most spend their time fleeing the immediate area. Cliff practically scoops Claire off the log they’re sitting on, and he sees Kai tackle both Rick and Karen out of the way before the rocket pops.</p><p>Amidst the hubbub, Cliff watches as Gray knocks over a tiki torch. It lands just below one of the tables they were using for s’mores supplies. The tablecloth promptly catches fire, and Saibara and Doctor rush to extinguish the flames. They manage to curb the mini-catastrophe before it ruins the table, but the graham crackers are burned to a crisp and the marshmallows melted beyond recognition.</p><p>Meanwhile, Cliff, horrified, hears the beginnings of another argument between Rick and Kai. But before he can even roll his sleeves up and deal with that, he hears Stu start wailing, tears streaming from his eyes as he sits in a puddle of water, live fish flopping all around him. In all the commotion, he must’ve knocked over the cooler containing all of Doug and Jeff’s freshly-caught bass.</p><p>Cliff surveys the scene with a heavy heart: a scattered, fear-stricken crowd of people; a charred table with gooey remnants of never-to-be-eaten s’mores; quarreling boys-to-lovers; a young boy crying as live fish suffocate around him, flopping their way to imminent death.</p><p>Ashamed and frustrated, he turns to Claire, expecting to see her face painted with disappointment. Instead, she’s --</p><p>-- laughing?</p><p>Yes, she’s laughing -- and loudly. She laughs so hard that little tears bud in the corners of her bright blue eyes. As the villagers adjust to their surroundings, her laughter becomes contagious: one by one, everyone joins in on the joke. Even Stu’s sobs are reduced to half-hearted sniffles; a smile breaks through like sunshine on his overcast expression. Everyone belly laughs --</p><p>-- except for Cliff, who just feels confused.</p><p>Claire wipes one of the tears from her eye, smiling up at him. Since she seems overtaken by her case of the giggles, he starts to speak. “I don’t understand. Why are you laughing?”</p><p>This question brings on an entire new wave of giggles. Thankfully, she works through it, and responds, “Be...Because it’s funny!”</p><p>“It was supposed to be perfect,” he mumbles, surveying the scene again. But as he does so, he tries to see things through Claire’s eyes. The flopping fish are indeed pretty amusing, at second glance. And even the charred s’mores table is a bit charming -- perhaps a few marshmallows and chocolate bars and graham crackers might be salvaged. He over-prepared on the s’mores, anyway, having bought out Jeff’s entire stock of marshmallows and chocolate over three days. And Kai and Rick have already calmed down -- in fact, he sees that Kai has his arm around Rick, now, and Rick is looking up at Kai with a warm, albeit timid, gaze. Karen lays a kiss on Rick’s cheek, and even tousles Kai’s hair for good measure.</p><p>“Kassey!” Claire calls, once she and the other villagers have had their fair share of giggles. “Are we good to keep the party going?”</p><p>“Oh yeah!” Kassey responds, his gravelly voice reaching over the villagers’ commotion. “It was just the one bottle rocket. My brother’s fault, probably.”</p><p>“Hey,” Patrick grouses, punching his twin on the arm.</p><p>“Great!” Claire calls. She directs her attention toward Kai, Rick, and Karen. “Can you three lovebirds help Stu? We can save those fish if we move fast.”</p><p>Kai nods despite Rick’s obvious blush, which earns a laugh from Karen. “You got it, Claire Bear. The lovebirds are on it.”</p><p>“I don’t like ‘the lovebirds,’” Rick grumbles as the trio moves across the circle toward Stu.</p><p>“It’s better than the three musketeers, Ricky,” Karen giggles.</p><p>Before passing by him, Kai gives Cliff a meaningful nod.</p><p>“Hey,” he says, with a more serious tone than Cliff has ever heard Kai use before, “thanks for the advice, man.”</p><p>Cliff, speechless, just watches as the three of them go to help Stu. It seems Claire isn’t quite done delegating yet -- she continues by asking Doug and Ann to help see what might be salvaged from the s’mores table, and asks Gotz to throw a few more logs on the fire and get rid of the bottle rocket.</p><p>As the villagers start to settle around the fire again, Cliff sighs. He knows it’s in Claire’s nature to be helpful, to be a leader. All she’s done since moving to Mineral Town is help people -- himself included. He wonders if one day for her to relax might’ve been too much for him to ask.</p><p>“Hey.”</p><p>Claire grabs his hand. Even this simple action helps smooth his thoughts just a bit.</p><p>“Everything’s fine, Cliff. No one got hurt. We all laughed it off.”</p><p>He sighs. “I know. I just wanted everything to be perfect, for one day.”</p><p>She giggles. “Cliff, if I wanted perfection, I wouldn’t have moved to Mineral Town. Perfection is boring and overrated.” She grabs his other hand, standing on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. “I love you. Thank you for doing all of this for me.” Suddenly abashed, she averts her gaze toward her sand-covered toes. “I can’t believe how lucky I am to be with you.”</p><p>He smiles. Feels the heat rise to his cheeks. “Likewise.”</p><p>Some of the villagers start calling for Claire -- something about a birthday gift she forgot to open. She smiles and looks up at him. “Well? Ready to get back to imperfection?” Then, seeing the frown on his face, she tilts her head to one side and asks, “What’s up?”</p><p>He chuckles. “Oh, uh. Well, to tell the truth, I’m a little sad about the marshmallows.”</p><p>A sly grin slips onto her features. From seemingly nowhere, she whips out another marshmallow and holds it before him.</p><p>“I told you I was waiting for the magic words,” she tells him matter-of-factly.</p><p>Rather than a please or thank-you, he leans in for a kiss, instead.</p><hr/><p>A/N: Yay! I never get to write for Mineral Town characters. Thanks again to the Bokumono Exchange group on Tumblr for setting this up! Hope you all enjoyed. &lt;3</p>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>